Honest Faces
by abraminwonderland
Summary: After learning from her mysterious new Watcher that she is destined to fight vampires, Rose Tyler struggles to balance her relationships with her newfound duty. With the help of her friends, can Rose stand up to the new Big Bad darkening the streets of London?
1. Disbelief

I boredly shoved chips into her mouth as Jimmy and I watched the football match. "Is this gonna be over soon?" I protested.

"Come on, it's almost finished," he said, ignoring me.

"It's gone into triple overtime!" I complained. Sports were boring, and I wanted to do something fun. I leaned in closer, and planted a flirty kiss on his cheek. He waved his hand at me, as if swatting a fly, and I got the message. "Sometimes I think you're not too interested in me, Jimmy." He continued ignoring her.

"No, Rose, I promise I am," he said after several minutes, his eyes still glued to the telly. I was fuming.

"Whatever," I miffed, and went into the kitchen for a snack. Mum was standing at the counter, leaving through a magazine and drinking her nightly tea. I opened up a package of biscuits that she'd been saving for guests, but this was an emergency.

"Everything alright, Rose?" Mum asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine," I asserted too quickly, "why do you ask?"

"You've just crushed that biscuit in your hand," she pointed out. I disposed of its mangled remains in the bin, and pulled out another.

"What do you know about biscuits?" I said defensively.

"Oi, don't be like that. I'm only trying to help. Has this got something to do with that boy Jimmy sitting in the living room, sprawled out like he owns the flat?" I didn't say anything, I didn't want to talk about it.

"Come on, Rose," she pleaded, "talk to your mum." She looked concerned, but had a hint of something else underlying it. Frustration or anger, perhaps.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you didn't like Jimmy," I said accusingly.

"Well he hasn't been good for you, and you know it. You've been missing classes, and sneaking around to parties with him and his lousy band!" she yelled.

"The Bleeding Swines are not lousy. I guess you're just too old to appreciate good music, or to know your own bloody daughter!"

"I do too know you! I've raised you by myself for sixteen years!" Mum walked into the sitting room, and turned off the telly.

"Oi, what was that for?" Jimmy protested.

"I've had enough of your nonsense, I want you out. And I don't want you hanging around my daughter anymore," she ordered.

"Mum, I love him!" I screamed. She couldn't be doing this; this wasn't happening.

"She's not just your daughter anymore, she's so much more than that. She's my girlfriend," Jimmy defended. "She's the hottest girl around." My heart melted; that was the nicest thing he'd ever said to me.

"That's it, you're done. Get of my house," said Mum. She grabbed Jimmy by the shoulders, and shoved him to the front door.

"Oi, you're spoiling my fun," Jimmy complained as Mum shoved him out the front door, slamming it.

Hot, angry tears were streaming down my face. "I can't believe you just did that," I said quietly. I looked up at her, and for a second she almost looked regretful. But no, she was just as smug as ever.

"He was bad for you, Rose," she said sternly.

"No, he was not!" I screamed. "He was perfect! He was cool and he liked me!"

"Rose, when you're older, you'll thank me."

"In the meantime, I'm going over to Shareen's. I can't deal with you." I walked out, and slammed the door. She didn't follow me.

I pulled my mobile out of my back pocket, and sent a quick text to Shareen. _Im coming over, i need a place 2 crash._

Her reply was immediate. _Everything ok?_

 _Ill explain when i get there. i hate my mum._ , I sent back to her. Shareen sent back a frowny face emoticon, and I put my mobile back in my pocket.

I started the short walk from my flat to Shareen's. It was dark out, but I make this journey all the time. I look down at my feet and count my steps to pass the time.

I was still fuming. What Mum did to Jimmy wasn't fair. He'd been a good boyfriend; Mum was just being a wet blanket. I'll just have to start sneaking around to see him. It wouldn't the first time.

"Oi, watch where you're going!" I said to the bloke who had just bumped into me. He looked at me, and widened his eyes.

"It's you!" he said excitedly.

"I'm sorry mate, but I don't know what you're talking about," I said, and walked away quickly.

"No, don't go, it's important," he said. I stop in my tracks.

"What's important?" I ask after a moment.

"You're the Slayer," he said. I turn around.

"I'm the what?" I ask defensively.

"You're the Slayer, the only one who can protect us from the vampires," he said, "you have no idea how long I've been looking for you." He reached into his leather jacket and pulled out something, and tried to hand it to me.

"That's a piece of wood. I don't want that," I said.

"Take it, you'll need it to protect yourself from the vampires," he said. Protect myself from him, more like it. I hesitate for a moment, but take the stick. If he tries to mug me, I can at least try to stab him with it, it's quite sharp.

I shook my head. "There is no such thing as vampires."

"I know it'll take some getting used to, but this is your life now. This is your destiny," he said.

"I don't have a destiny. I get up every day, go to school, eat chips, and go to bed. That's all my life is. I don't need you spewing nonsense about how I'm some vampire slayer. Thanks for the pointy stick, now leave me alone," I huffed, and continued back on my walk to Shareen's flat.

"You can't run from this," he yelled after me. I walked faster.

* * *

"You'll never believe what just happened to me," I said to Shareen. She looked concerned.

"What is this about, Rose?" she asked. I hesitated, getting a bit choked up.

"My mum kicked Jimmy out of the house," I said after a minute.

"Jackie wouldn't do that, would she?" she gasped.

"She did do it, Shareen. I was talking to her in the kitchen while I was eating biscuits and then she suddenly started freaking out and then she went and kicked him out," I said, tears starting to drip.

"Did she at least give a reason?" Shareen asked, confused.

"She said something about him 'not being good for me,'" I mimicked. I blew my nose into a tissue from the box on Shareen's nightstand.

Shareen paused for a moment. "She may have a point, Rose."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You haven't been the same since you got together with him," she said, "you've been bailing on me so you can go hang out with him."

"I have to go to his band rehearsals, Shareen, I'm their groupie," I sniffled.

"All I'm saying is that you've been different lately."

"I need you to back me up on this, Shareen." A huge tear rolled down my cheek. Shareen sighed, and gave me a hug.

"I'm so sorry that your mum is such a killjoy," she said. I hugged her tightly.

"I am too."

She pulled out a box of sweets from under her bed. "These are for emergencies," she said.

Tears welled up in my eyes. Shareen was such a good mate. I opened up a Mars bar and sat up against the pillow. Something was still bugging me, though.

"There was something else I wanted to talk to you about, actually," I said.

"What is it? Did something happen?" she asked.

"Yeah, actually, something real weird happened when I was walking over here. Some bloke bumped into me and then called me a vampire slayer. Then he handed me this sharp wooden stick," I said, pulling it out and showing it to Shareen.

"He gave you a stick of wood? That's bizarre."

"He said I'm supposed to use it to protect myself from the vampires. He said it was my destiny. Do you think this means anything?"

"No, Rose, of course not. He probably just had too much to drink."

"Yeah, you're probably right." My phone beeped in my pocket, and I pulled it out.

"What's it say?" she asked.

"Nothing, just a text from Mum to make sure I arrived okay," I lied. I didn't want Shareen to worry about what it said.

 _The vampires will find you. You must be ready. -D_


	2. Reality

"You've been gone all for a whole day, Rose," Mum said angrily. "The sun is almost down." I had just gotten home, and she was already grilling me. It's like she doesn't trust me.

"Whatever," I said, starting to my room.

"You don't get to go and just retire to your room for the night; we need to talk. Just you and me. Jackie and Rose," she said.

"I don't think there's much to talk about. You made yourself very clear last night," I said.

I walked into my room and slammed the door. I started flipping through one of my scrapbooks, this one was of me and Jimmy. I smiled looking at the nice pictures of us. My favourite one was of the time when him and his bandmates let me come watch rehearsal for the first time. I'm not going to be able to go to rehearsals anymore, I thought. I'm not going to be able to see him anymore. I threw the book on the floor, and pictures and sequins flew out, separating from the hastily applied gluestick. I buried my face in my hands, and threw myself on the bed. I screamed and hit the pillow with my fists. I felt so alone, as if the entire world had been ripped out from under me like a rug. I picked up the stake that I'd thrown on the floor when I got home, and glared at it. It was mocking me. It was just a reminder of some sick practical joke. I shoved it in the back of my desk drawer, with the rest of the junk that I don't need.

I felt my phone in my back pocket, like it weighed a hundred kilos. I pulled it out and flipped through my contacts. _Jenny, Jessica, Jimmy._ I pressed the button, and the call started dialing. It rang for a few moments, and then he answered.

"Rose," he said, "I thought you'd never call."

"Of course I was gonna call, Jimmy. My mum can't hold me down for long," I said proudly.

"You should come 'round, Rose. The alley behind my flat, you know it?" he asked.

"I'll come right now!" I said excitedly.

"The sun is almost down, be there when it's dark," he told me.

"I'll be there. I can't wait!" I said, grinning ear to ear. He hung up. I didn't care though, because I was getting to go see the love of my life. I sent a text to Shareen telling her the good news, and she sent back a text of hearty congratulations.

I started climbing down the fire escape outside my window. I ran as fast as I could to Jimmy's flat. The sun was down, and my spirits were up. I was ecstatic.

I spotted him behind his building, and then everything was okay. I went over to hug him. I felt his body beneath me. It was a bit cold, but I didn't care. It was mine. I looked up at his face, and he was smirking. "I'm glad you're here, Rose."

"I am too," I smiled. "I'm glad Mum isn't smart enough to lock my window." He gave a small laugh.

"Apparently neither are you." His face started melting into something horrifically mangled. He smiled, baring his teeth which had morphed into sharp fangs. I screamed, then kicked him in the stomach, which sent him flying. Apparently vampires were weaker than I thought. Not that vampires were real, of course. He recovered quickly, and came and punched me in the face. It knocked me down. He bent down over me, and I could feel his cold breaths brushing against my skin. I squeezed my eyes tight, and prayed that it wouldn't hurt for too long .

"Quickly, use this!" I opened my eyes, seeing the strange man from last night throwing me another one of those wooden stakes. It landed a few feet away from me, so I kicked Jimmy away, and started crawling for it.

"What do I do with it?" I yelled, holding it up.

"Don't listen to him, Rose," Jimmy said, slinking back over to me. "I love you."

"He's lying to you, Rose," said the man in the leather jacket. "That man is dead. This is just a demon parading around in his corpse like a puppet. Just use the stake, and stab it through his heart." I looked at Jimmy, and his hellish features started to retract, leaving only his face. His perfect, sweet face.

"Rose, I'm in love with you. Just come with me and then we can be together again," he said. It scared me how much I wanted to say yes. I couldn't believe I was about to do this; to do the unthinkable.

I wrapped my fingers tightly around the ordinary sharp stick of wood, and drove it through his heart.

At first, nothing happened. Jimmy looked irritated, and lunged at me. His skin crumbled into dust leaving nothing but a hollow skeleton, which also disintegrated before it even hit the ground. My ears rang from the horrible hissing sound of him turning to ashes. I dropped the stake on the ground, and it bounced louder and slower than it normally would. I just killed a vampire. More importantly, I just killed my boyfriend.

"Not bad," said the man. "Most Slayers usually miss the heart their first time." I wiped the impressive glob of tear snot off of my face.

"My boyfriend is dead and you don't even care?" I sobbed.

"Your boyfriend was a vampire," he deadpanned.

"He wasn't always!"

"That doesn't matter now. He's gone, and we have work to do."

"What do you mean we? I don't even know who you bloody are!"

"I'm the Doctor. A member of the Watcher's council."

"Doctor who?"

"Just the Doctor."

"And I'm just supposed to accept that? You're the Doctor and you made me a vampire slayer?"

"I didn't _make_ you a vampire slayer. You were chosen when the previous Slayer died."

"And who was that?"

"Her name was Faith, but that doesn't matter now. She isn't the Slayer anymore; you are."

"Are you sure that I'm the Slayer? I'm nothing special."

"Rose, you just easily took down that vampire your first time. Most people can't do that at all." I picked up the stake off the ground, and held it close to my chest.

"Let's just say that I am a vampire slayer. Just a hypothetical. What would I have to do?"

"Patrol the streets at night, hunting for vampires and other demons. Then you kill them. After we finish your training, of course."

"Training?"

"We can talk about that later. But for now, go home and go to bed. But take your stake with you, the streets are dangerous at night." I turned away, and ran home, saying nothing.

I climbed up the fire escape, and climbed through my window. I was horrified to see my mum sitting on my bed with her arms crossed, looking furious.


End file.
